Nuveen LLC Makes New $20.59 Million Investment in Viasat Inc. $VSAT

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC has made a significant investment of $20.59 million in Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT) by acquiring approximately 1,976,288 shares in the 1st quarter, representing 1.53% ownership of the company.
• Viasat recently reported earnings of $0.17 per share, surpassing analyst expectations and achieving a revenue of $1.17 billion for the quarter.
• Analysts have mixed views on Viasat, with a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $21.13, while some have made significant adjustments to their price objectives.

Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 1,976,288 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $20,593,000. Nuveen LLC owned about 1.53% of Viasat at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Viasat by 2.9% during the first quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 52,738 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $550,000 after purchasing an additional 1,494 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC boosted its position in Viasat by 11.4% during the 1st quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 16,673 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $174,000 after purchasing an additional 1,700 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE grew its stake in Viasat by 46.4% during the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 6,367 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $66,000 after buying an additional 2,019 shares during the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its position in Viasat by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 72,132 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $614,000 after buying an additional 2,050 shares during the period. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in Viasat by 233.4% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,177 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 2,224 shares during the last quarter. 86.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on VSAT shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Viasat in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. William Blair raised Viasat from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Viasat from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Needham & Company LLC raised their target price on Viasat from $16.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, B. Riley cut their target price on Viasat from $56.00 to $52.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $21.13.

Viasat Price Performance

Viasat stock traded up $1.32 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $27.93. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,936,328 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,596,949. Viasat Inc. has a 12 month low of $6.69 and a 12 month high of $28.59. The company has a quick ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 2.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $18.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $12.48. The company has a market capitalization of $3.75 billion, a PE ratio of -6.05 and a beta of 1.20.

Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The communications equipment provider reported $0.17 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.15) by $0.32. The business had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.13 billion. Viasat had a negative net margin of 13.11% and a negative return on equity of 6.37%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.30 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Viasat Inc. will post -0.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Viasat

Viasat, Inc provides broadband and communications products and services worldwide. The company's Satellite Services segment offers satellite-based fixed broadband services, including broadband internet access and voice over internet protocol services to consumers and businesses; in-flight entertainment and aviation software services to commercial airlines and private business jets; satellite-based connectivity services; mobile broadband services, including satellite-based internet services to energy offshore vessels, cruise ships, consumer ferries, and yachts; and energy services, which include ultra-secure solutions IP connectivity, bandwidth-optimized over-the-top applications, industrial internet-of-things big data enablement, and industry-leading machine learning analytics.